Sewing-machine.



S. BURTON, DEGD. 0. P. 110111 011, ADMINISTRATRIX. SEWING MACHINE.APPLICATION FILED JUNE 10, 1907. RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912.

1,041,585. Patented 00t.15,1912.

7 SHEETS-8HBET 1.

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S. BURTON, DECD. C. P. BURTON, ADMINISTRATRIX. SEWING MACHINE.APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 18, 1907. RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912 1,041,535,Patented 0013.15, 1912.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

S. BORTON, DEGD. 0. P. BORTON, ADMINISTRATRIX.

I SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1907. RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912.

1,041,585. Patented Oct. 15, 1912.

7 SHEETS-SHEET Mimi! 3% M I a 3mm l'mzoaes' 4 CW] ddw/kzzai, @210 my s.BORTON, DEGD. U. P. BORTOLQDMINISTRATRIX.

SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1907; RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912.

Patented Oct. 15, 1912.

7 BHEETSSHEET 6.

%m was S. BORTON, DEGD. o. P. BURTON, ADMINISTEATRIX.

SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1907. RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912.

Patented Oct. 15, 1912.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 6.

3] woe/urea Q/Vi ht eoozo S. BURTON, DEGD. a. P. HORTON, ADMINISTRATBIX.

SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1907. RENEWED AUG. 1, 1912.1,041,585.

Patented Oct. 15, 1912.

7 SHEETSSHEET 7.

anuanfoz 2 h1 zooeo Qttoznag S UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

I CHRISTINA P. BORTON, 0F WARWICK, RHODE ISLAND, ADMINISTRATRIX OFSTOCKTON IBORTON, DECEASED, ASSIGNOR TO WILLCOX 82; GIBBS SEWING MACHINECOMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

SEWING-MACHINE.

Patented Oct. 15,1912.

Original application filed December 13, 1906, Serial No. 347,649.Divided and this application filed June 18, 1907, Serial No. 379,654.Renewed August 1, 1912. Serial No. 712,767.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that STOCKTON BORTON, deceased, late a citizen of the UnitedStates and resident of the town of Warwick, county of Kent, State ofRhode Island, d1d invent new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machines, fully set forth in the following specification.

The present invention relates to a sewing machine especially designed toproduce, by

. one operation and at high speed (meaning that each'needle shall becap-able 0f mak.-.

ing approximately three thousand or more stitches per minute), acomplete seam of spe: cial form for joining two abutting edges ofcut-knit goods.

This is a division of my application for United States Letters-Patentfiled Dec. 13th, 1906, Sr. No. 347,649.

The present invention is particularly directed to an improved form ofwork-arm on the frame or casing of the machine; to driving connectionsextending along said arm to elements operating atthe free end thereof;and to other features of improvement and combinations of elementshereinafter fully explained and set forth in the claims.

Figure l is a plan view of the complete machine; Fig. 2 is an elevationfrom the right of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an elevation from the left of Fig.1; Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on line AB, Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is avertical section on line OD of Fig. 4, some parts on the line of sectionbeing shown in elevation; Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line NO, Fig.1; Figs. 7, 8 and 9 illustrate the stitch-forming elements in theirrelative positions when the needles are at the limit of their upwardmovement, and the loopers be- .low the throat-plate at the limit oftheir ad vance or forwardfmovement in, relation to the needles, Fig. 9being a vertical sectional view through the throat-plate and the work,with the stitch-forming elements above and below the work-plate inelevation, Fig. 7 being a corresponding plan view (turned atright-angles to Fig. 9) of the elements above the throat-plate, and Fig.8 being a corresponding plan view (turned at right-angles to Fig. 9) ofthe elements below the throatplate; Figs. 10, 11 and 12 are views inoutline of a modified form of machine frame in which the shape of thework-arm differs somewhat from that shown in the other figures,-Fig. 10being a front elevation, Fig. 11 atop plan view on a smaller scale, andFig. 12 an end view from the right of Fig. 11.

The machine herein illustrated and described is adapted to form, by asingle operation, the seam constituting the subjectmatter of my UnitedStates Letters-Patent, No. 888,614, dated March 31st, 1908; said seam isalso illustrated and described in my above-mentioned patent application,Sr. No. 347,649, filed Dec. 13, 1906.

Stitch-forming eZemcnta-A brief explanation of the movements of theparts which carry and act directly upon the nine threads-fourneedle-threads 1, 2, 3 and 4, cross-thread 5 and four hook or looperthreads 6, 7, 8 and 9will assist to an understanding of the drivingconnections and other mechanism by which said parts are actuated.Referring for this purpose to Figs. 7, 8 and 9, 1, 2*, 3 and 4 are agang of four parallel needles for the needle-threads 1, 2, 3 and 4respectively; these needles are secured to a common needle-bar andreciprocate together, the needle 1 being slightly shorter than theothers, as shown, and for end of an oscillatory shaft 78, and has athread-eye 5 and'a projecting thread-guiding blade 5. Hook 101, alsofixed to the lower end of an oscillatory shaft (referred to later),is'formed at its end with'a depending horn 5. It will thus be seen thatthread-carrier 80 and hook 101 oscillatewith their respective shafts; atthe stage of the stitch-forming operation shown in Figs. 9, thedirection of their movement is indicated by arrows. A part of thepresser foot is shown at 26, and a part of an auxiliary foot, yieldinglycarried by the presserfoot and designated a chaining-foot, is

shown at 25. 28 is the cloth or throat-plate and 30 is a piece of fabricon which the mechanism is operating. Of the elements operating below thethroatplate, 20 is a por tion of the feed-surface operating upwardtrated by the ellipse 166 in dotted lines, Fig.

through the throat-plate to advance the work, the path of its movementbelng illus- 9. 6, 7*, 8 and 9 are loopers secured together and movingin unison in an approximately horizontal plane. The dotted line elli se199, Fig. 8, illustrates the path described by the looper 6 in itsmovement,

plained in detail.

The stitch-forming elements referred to above, when actuated throughdriving connections, cotiperate to form a seam such as heretoforereferred to. The driving connections for the elements operatin below thethroat-plate will be hereina er explained; the driving connections tothe elements operating above the throat-plate require no furtherexplanation herein.

Work-arm and frame of machine.The framework of the machine comprises amain standard 40 of the hollow-column or box type, a standard 41 of theribbed column type, a bridge. 42 rigidly connecting the standards, and awork-arm 40 The moving parts requiring lubricant are as far aspracticable inclosed or covered by hollow portions of the frame-work soformed that the lubricant or oil is prevented from flowing or leaking tothe outer surfaces, but is drained into reservoirs from which it may bereadily removed at convenient intervals.

Removable caps are provided where access to working parts is necessaryfor adjustment or repairs. Thus, cap' LO (Figs. 1 and 2) forms a part ofthe front and top of standard 40; cap 41 covers parts working in the topof standard 41; and cap 41 covers an eccentric and its connections atthe lefth'and end of machine.

The hollow horizontal work-arm 40 extends forward from an opening (Fig.4) in the lower part of the front face of the standard 40, to an elbowfrom which the arm continues toward the left and rearward, to its freeend terminating beneath an overhanging portion of the head of themachine, as shown in Fig. 3. Four screws 340 (see Figs. 2 and 6) passthrough horizontal openings in the wall of standard 40, and theirthreaded ends take into threaded sockets in the supporting end of thework-arm, thereby rigidly securing the latter to the standard. Thehorizontal portion of the arm between the supporting extremity and theelbow (desi natedfor convenience the bridging portlon) extends, asclearly appears in Fig. 1, in a direction transverse to the direction ofthe horizontal portion from the elbow to the supporting end of the arm.As illustrated I in Fig. 1, these two parts of the arm extend indirections approximately at right angles to each other, but the angle ofthis transverse relationship may be greater or less than ninety degrees,as desired; each part also forms an angle of less than ninety degreeswith reference to theflnain portion of the frame-work, as shown inFig. 1. This'bowing or bending of the horizontalwork-arm forward fromthe frame-work creasing, leaves it suspended free of support from be lowand with unobstructed space or clearance, both above and below, forkthework and the operators hands and arms. The work-arm is trough-like incross-section, giving access tothe parts operating therein upon removalof a cover 40 1).

In many machines heretofore designed and commercially used for analogouswork, it has been common to use a work-arm extending beneath andparallel to the bridge' of the frame-work, the feed operating to advancethe work onto the free end of and along said arm toward the end at whichit is supported from one of theend standards of the machine. Therefore,in sewing up tubular work, such as stockings and the arms and legs ofgarments, for which such machines are especially designed, the work mustaccumulate on and about this arm until com-.. pleted. Thereupon, inorder to free and deliver the completed work from the machine, it isnecessary to arrest its operation, elevate the resser-foot, needles,etc., cut or break the threads, and then pass the 'work, as grad- Iuzally extended and flattened, back along the work-arm through the smallspace between the presser-foot above and the throat-plate, feed surface,etc., belowor in other words, the work must traverse in a reversedirection and with the machine stopped, the same path which it wascaused to'traverse by the feed of the machine during the :formation ofthe seam. It is obvious that'this operation of removing the worknecessarily involves the double loss of consuming much of the operatorstime and of putting the machine out of use for a material portion ofeach days work. Furthermore, removal of the work in this way frequentlyso disturbs the posit-ions of the several threads that the correctformation of stitches does not proceed immediately upon -again startingthe machine, and imperfect stitches are formed at-the beginning of thenew seam.

In the machine'- of the present invention, the losses and diflicultiesabove referred to are obviated, as the feed operates to advance thecompleted work off the arm (71. e., longitudinally thereof and towardits free end). Furthermore, the peculiar shape and disposition of thework-arm affords the desirable conditions 'of having the feed advancethe work away from the operator, and of aflording ample space above andbelow the work-arm, unobstructed byother parts of the machine, so thatthe operator may easily manipulate and arrange the work on or about thework-arm, and may unobstructedly view the operation of the mechanism,without having to assume an uncomfortable position or reach around orbehind other parts of the mechanism. In operating the machine hereinshown, the operator may preferably sit with her right side toward the'machine in which posit-ion she will be able to look in the direction ofthe feed directly along its path and may comfortably extend herright-hand and arm across the underside of the bridging portion of thework-arm and readily handle the work and arrange it on thework-supporting portion of the arm to rapidly present it to the feedmechanism. It is also of importance to note that the present machinemakes by a single operationa complete seam, including the threads whichcross the meeting edges 'of the two pieces of work joined. I 1

Figs. 10,11 and 12 show a somewhat modi fied form of the hollow work-armembodying the characteristics and principles of constructions above setforth. In this case the horizontal bridging part 400 of the work-armextends forward, from the supporting end of the arm which joins theupper part of the front face of the standard 40 at an angle of less thanninety degrees to the main portion of the frame-work, to an elbow at401, and from the latter the part 402 depends in an approximatelyvertical direction to a second elbow 403. From the elbow 403, theapproximately horizontal work-supporting end or part 404 of the work-armextends toward the left and rearward (Fig. 10) and terminates beneath anoverhanging portion of the head of the machine in substantially the samemanner as the corresponding portion. of the work-arm of Figs. 1. to 3.The open space 405 (Fig. 12) thus provided for the right arm of theoperative affords still further freedom of movement in manipulation,arranging and advancing the work along the part 404 of the arm. As shownin Fig. 11, the horizontal bridging portion 400 extends in a directiontransverse to the direction of the workexceptionof obvious changesnecessary to employed as in the case of the form of the work-arm shownin Figs. 1 to 5.

Main (Zr/ring connections to elements below the throat-plate.45 is themain-shaft; at-its right-hand end it carries the handwheel 46, havingthe usual grooved driving pulley 46 integral therewith, and fixed on theshaft by a set-screw 46 (Fig. 6). The hub of this combined wheel andpulley takes the end thrust of the shaft 45 against the end of. bearing48 in standard 40, and an oil flange 47 -atthe end of the hub shedssuperfluous oil into the end of the bearing opening from which a groove49 in the bearing conducts the oil through an opening 49, to the insideof standard 40 which constitutes one of the reservoirs in whichsuperfluous lubricant may accumulate.

50 is a bevel gear secured to shaft 45 by set-screw 50" (Fig. 6) andmeshing with'a bevel gear 52 secured to vertical shaft 53 by set-screw52*. Ball-thrust bearing 51 surrounds shaft 45 between'gear 50 andhearing 48. i

118 is a combined bevel-gear and loopereccentric secured by set-screw118 to the lower end of shaft 58. The eccentric portion is numbered 167.Gears 52 and 118 are thus so placed that the end thrust on each will bebalanced by the other, thus avoiding friction and the necessity ofball-thrust hearings or like anti-friction devices. The bearings forshaft 53 are plain bushings 120, 120 encircled and clamped by lugs .orbracket arms 121, 121 split at their outer ends and adapted to betightened against the bearings by screws 122, 122. Through connectionsexplained hereafter, shaft 53 drives all of the moving parts operatingbelow the throat-plate.

The feed-123, Figs. 4 and 6, is the feedshaft bearing in adjustablyfixed bushings 154, 155. Bushing 154 receives the endthrust ofbevel-gear 119 through the intermediate ball-thrust-bearing 156.Bevelgear 119 is rotated by bevel-gear 118 with which it meshes, and apin 124 on gear 1.19 engages a screw-stud 125 (Fig. 6) on feedshaft 123to rotate the latter. Another pin 124 projecting from gear 119 in thepath of stud 125, limits the rotation of shaft 123 independent of gear119 and consequently independent of the rotation of the main shaft 45.The object of this lost motionconnecend to a depending arm 162 on lever159. The spring 160 allows the feed lever to swing forward and backwardapproximately on a radius equal to the length of the free spring, or inother words, the length of spring between the portions at the ends whichare clamped to parts 160 and 161. At its forward end the feed-lever isguided and confined at its sides by two parallel guide-bars 163, 163secured by screws to the inside of the hollow Work-arm; a recess orcentric 157, is by virtue of the swinging spring fulcrum of thefeed-lever 159 trans.

formed into an elliptical motion. in the toothed feed-surface, the majoraxis of the ellipse (see 166, Fig. 9) being vertical or slightly pitchedin the direction of feed, or

in a direction opposite thereto, as desired.

This throws the greater portion of the forward movement of the feedsurface teeth above the work-plate, at which time they act to feed thework, the needles being elevated clear of the work (see Fig. 9).-

Suitable means, which it is not necessary to here explain, are providedfor lifting the presser-foot and associated parts and stitch-formingelements which operate above the throat-plate, and for simultaneouslyreleasing the thread-tension devices, when it is desired to insert orwithdraw work. In this operation the projecting end of anarm 127, Fig.2, is moved upward. It will be understood that when the needles areelevated free of the work, the teeth of the feedsurface, in the normaloperation of the machine, project above the surface of the throat-plate.In order that the teeth of the feed-surface may not interfere withremoval of the work (particularly when the seam is stopped back from theedge of the work) when the needles are up and the presserfoot lifted,means are provided whereby the feed-surface will be dropped below thesurface of the throat-plate. As will be seen this dropping of thefeed-surface takes place simultaneously with the lifting of thepresser-foot and release of the tensions. The outer end of lever-arm 127is connected by a depending link 132, to a rock-arm 133 pivoted on astud 134. Teeth 135 at the end ofarm 133 are adapted to engage gearteeth on a sleeve 136 secured to the projecting end of feed-shaft 123.In operation, when the machine is stopped with the needles up, and theoperative lifts the resser-foot and through an releases the tensions, asalread explained,

the lifting of arm 127 will swing the arm 133 upward and its teeth 135will engage the teeth of 136 (which are so located as to come toposition to be thus engaged when the machine is stopped with the needlesup) and slightly rotate the feed shaft 123 in the direction of the arrowFig. 6, until the teeth 125 pass the teeth of 136, the stud 125 leavingits driving pin 124 on gear 119, as shown in Fig.6. This limitedindependent rotation of the feed-shaft causes its eccentric 157 to rockfeed lever 159 suflicient to drop the feed surface below the surface of'the throat-plate. When the machine is again started, the feed shaft andfeed remain stationary until pin 124 again overtakes stud 125, fromwhich it results that the normal positioning and timing is not afiectedby this temporary lowering of the feed while the needles are up.

L00p-sp1'eader.-Loop-spreader 14, heretofore referred to and shown inFigs. 4, 5, 6 and 7, is in the shape, of a bell-crank-lever,

pivoted at one end on a pin 202 which lat ter is secured to hollowwork-arm by a screw 203 (Fig. 4). A stud 205 depending from theunderside of the loop-spreader at the angle or bend thereof.is soconnected with the end of the feed-lever 159 that the movements of thelatter oscillate the spreader on its pivot pin 202, thus swinging thetoothed end of the spreader back and forth transversely to the work-arm.

Loopers (melopemtz'ng means theref0r. Referring particularly to Figs. 4and 5, 177 is the looper-lever. 183 is a looper carrier or blockswiveled to turn on a headed stud 184, which after passing through thecarrier enters a socket in the end of lever 177 where it is secured byscrew 185. The four loopers 6 7, 8 and 9 are secured together on thecarrier 183. As shown in Figs. 8

and 9, each looper has a thread groove 196 this seat an oblong openingin the pitman is closed at one side by a cap 169*; the

length of the slot permits the pitman to.

move longitudinally on bearing blocks 171, 171 in said opening, saidblocks embracing and being movable about a headed pivotstud 170 securedat its lower end in a socket in seat 170. A washer 173 on the stud 170beneath the head thereof, extends over the bearing blocks and over theupper surface of the pitman at the sides of the rectangularopening-therein, and confines the parts in operative position. Throughthese connections the, eccentric moves the pitman longiend in a socketthrough seat 177 a by a screw 181 (Fig. 5), and embraced by a splitbearing 180, consisting of two blocks similar to blocks 171. Anelongated rectangular opening through the looper-lever above seat 17 7embraces the bearing 180 beneath the head of pivot stud 181. From theseconnections it follows that the looper lever 177 may move longitudinallyon and at the same time turn about pivot-stud 181 as a fulcrum, thiscombined movement being imparted to said lever from the pitman 169through the connections explained, and resulting at the looper s inthe'elliptical movement indicated at 199 in Fig. 8.

Passage of looper-threadsto the Z00pers.- From a rotary take-up 54 (Fig.1), the looper-threads 6, 7, 8 and 9 pass through a thread-eye 209 (Fig.6) directly below said take-up, and thence descend to four threadeyes216 (F ig. 4) in a bar across the inside ,of a thread-guard 217, whencethey pass horizontally along the inside of the guard to four morethread-eyes 219, and from the latter through four grooves or channels inthe upper surface of a bar 220 which bridges the hollow work-arm in a'diagonal direction directly beneath the work-arm cover 40 (Fig. 4). Fromthe ends of the grooves the threads pass through suitable eyes (not'shown) on the front vertical wall of the work-arm along a recess orchannel 221 (Fig. 4) in said wall beneath cover 223 (Fig. 3), betweenseparating and guiding pins 222, arranged in a vertical row (only thetop'pin showing in Fig. 4) and through opening 190 (Fig. 4) to thethread-eyes 195 (Figs. 5 and 9) from which they pass to the loopers, asshown.

at I claim is 1. A sewing machine having a work-arm free at itswork-supporting end at which the stitch-forming mechanism operates andat itsother end joining the frame-work of the machine, said arm betweenits ends being bowed. forward away from said frame-work and including anapproximately horizontal bridging portion extending in a directiontransverse to the direction of the work-supporting end of the arm andhaving a clearance beneath providing a space into which a hand or anarm-of an operator may be passed below said bridging portion in holding,guiding or manipulating the work.

2. A sewing machlne having a work-arm free at its work-supporting end atwhich the stitch-forming mechanism operates and supported entirely fromits other end which joins the frame-work of the machine, said armbetween its ends being bowed forward away from said frame-work andincluding an approximately horizontal portion extending in a directiontransverse to the direction of the work-supporting end of the arm.

3. A sewing machine having a work-arm free at one end at which thestitch-forming mechanism operates and supported entirely from its otherend which )OlIlS the framework of the machine, said arm between its endsbeing bowed forward from the main part of the machine in anapproximately horizontal direction.

4. In a sewing machine, the combination with stitch-forming mechanism,of a workarm free at one end at which the stitchforming mechanismoperates and supported entirely from its other end which joins theframe-work of the machine, said arm between its ends being bowed forwardfrom the main part of the machine in an approximately horizontaldirection; and driving connections extending along said arm to the partor parts of the stitch-forming mechanism operating at the free endthereof.

. 5. In a sewing machine, the combination with stitch forming mechanism,of an elbowed work-arm free at one end at which the stitch-formingmechanism operates and supported from its other end which joins theframe-work of the machine, said arm extending outward in anapproximately horizontal direction from the frame-work or casing at itssupporting end and inward from an elbow to its free end.

6. A sewing machine having a work-arm free at one end at which thestitch-forming mechanism operates and supported from its other end whichjoins the frame-work of the machine, said arm extending from itssupporting end outward from the frame-work, thence downward and thenceinward toward the frame-work to its said free end.

7. In a sewing machine, the combination with stitch forming mechanismincluding work-feeding means, of a work-arm free at one end at which thestitch-forming mechanism operates and supported from its other end whichjoins the frame-workof the machine, said arm extending from itssupporting end outward from the frame -work thence downward and thenceinward toward the frame-work to its said free end, said work-feedingmeans operating to feed the work toward or off the free end of the arm.

8. A sewing machine having a hollow work-arm free at one end at whichthe stitch-forming mechanism operates and suported from its other endwhich joins the ing clearance beneath the arm, said arm between its endsbeing bowed outward from the main part of the machine;

9. A sewing machine having a hollow work-arm free at one end in whichpart or parts of the stitch-forming mechanism operates and supportedfrom its other end which joins the frame-work of the machine therebyproviding clearance beneath the arm, said arm between its ends beingbowed forward from the main part of the machine in an approximatelyhorizontal direction.

10. A sewing machine having a hollow work-arm free at one end at whichthe stitch-forming mechanism operates and sup-" rame-work of the machinethereby providwith stitch-forming mechanism of a hollow elbowed work-armfree at one end at which the stitch-forming mechanism operates andsupported from its other end which oins the frame-work of the machinethereby providing clearance beneath the arm, said hollow arm extendingoutward in an approximately horizontal direction from the frame-work atits supporting end and inward from an elbow to its free end; and drivingconnections extending through said hollow work-arm to a part or parts ofthe stitch-forming mechanism operating in the free end thereof.

12. A sewing machine having a worloarm extending outward from theframe-work of the machine, thence downward, and thence in anapproximately horizontal direction to its outer free end, said work-armbeing supported from its end which joins the framework of the machine,thereby providing clearance beneath the arm for a hand or arm of anoperator.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

' CHRISTINA P. BORTON, Administratfiw of the estate of Stockton Barton,deceased.

Witnesses: 4

HERBERT E. MA'rrmwsoN, JAMES C. COLLINS, Jr.

